Take My Hand
by kurisaru
Summary: Wild Arms 2 fic -- My version of how Wild Arms 2 should be for the most part. [REVISED]
1. Prologue

**  
  
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Disclaimer**: Wild Arms 2 doesn't belong to me. Wah.  
**Pairings**: Ashley+Marina, AshleyxLilka, Brad+Tim ... Blah.  
**Rating**: R *SNORT AT FFNET*  
**Warnings**: What...? Well, language, really. And maybe naughty stuff (or mentionings therein)  
  
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**Notes**: WHAT?! Oh yes, it's true! I have basically re-done this fic. I sort of died off the face of the internet and I'm back.. so well.. yeah. *piku* I've gone through the liberty of fixing this fic up.. I realized I had no ACTUAL plot, so yes, editing will be in order. Thanks to those of you who have reviewed, though. ^_^;;  
  
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*...* denotes a thought.  
  
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**Take My Hand **:** Prologue**  
  
  
  
"...I'm bored, guys..."  
  
Emerald eyes stared up at the ceiling of the Valeria Chateau in pure thought... with just a frown gracing the lips just below. Ashley Winchester hated waiting for Valeria--or as he was accustomed to refer to the man as Irving. His chest ached briefly as he rubbed his neck--reminiscing about his.. *Friend...?*, did he refer to her as that? *No.* Never could that be; his feelings went towards Marina more than that.  
  
"Lilka ... I'm bored.." Came the soft voice just close-by Ashley. Tim Rhymeless he realized, as he turned his head to briefly watch the blonde boy.  
  
"Aa. Tim, don't worry. Irving will be here soon." And that came from the taller brunette beside Tim; Lilka Eleniak. Her voice just as soft, and octaves higher. Blinking green-colored eyes at her friend and fellow teammate. "He'll be here soon with our mission report."  
  
"...Don't think so highly of that," came the gruff, low voice of Brad Evans, across the room in the corner by the entrance to the 'briefing room'. He was frowning, his usual expression. His heavy ARM lay resting across his chest. *If anything else, Brad was the most intimidating to anyone.* Ashley thought. "By the time Irving comes in here, I think poor Tim would reach puberty."  
  
"Mou, Brad..!" Lilka had flustered, hugging onto the younger blonde beside her. If at all times, it was usually Lilka who protected Tim--a character trait left from her sister--like a big sister. Tim looked slightly irritated at the two elders, and decisevely stuck his tongue out at Brad.  
  
"All right, all right, calm down, everyone." The silken voice had belonged to the man who'd entered the room. His form braced up by the custom-made crutch at his side. His hair seemed disheveled, as did the look in his eyes.  
  
The blue-haired man sighed, slouching over into his chair and ruffling his own hair. He was surely going to go crazy if Irving didn't arrive sooner. "..How long does it take for you to come here on those crutches anyway? You're usually here before we are."  
  
"Not apparently, long enough for your tastes, Ashley." Irving began his way around, into the room, walking towards his desk, and shooing Lilka and Tim into seats as he began to sit. "And I'm usually on this floor, but I was a bit...ah, busy." He cleared his throat as he dropped a manila folder onto the desk.  
  
"Eh? Another mission, Valeria?" Brad frowned deeper, tucking his ARM to his side. "We just finished one before... with Tim. And now you've another…? I'm wondering how ARMS is going to survive if this keeps up." He mouthed off to the crutched man, grimacing slightly as he eyed him brushing the long silver strands of hair from his face.  
  
"For your information, this is a very important mission, _Mister_ Evans," Irving narrowed his eyes briefly as he stated Brad's last name, and leant back into his plush chair as he waved a hand towards the envelope, giving the others his attention. "...Very important. It involves Odessa. We've reason to believe their tirades are dying off. You will infiltrate their ship, and... the usual. You can read this," Irving gestured to the folder. "For the rest of the briefing. It's a matter of business I be somewhere else right now."  
  
Lilka blinked, canting her head at the elder. "You're going, so soon...? And you just got here, too." She pouted softly, reaching onto Irving's desk for the folder, when it was snatched out of her grasp by Ashley. "…Hey!"  
  
"I'm the leader. I'll read it, and inform you guys of what to do, okay? Go prepare for the mission, or whatever." Ashley spoke, his countennance a bit of a frown as he began to sift through the pages within the manila folder.  
  
"Ara, really Ashley?" Tim seemed to brighten up, blinking attention into his sapphire-blue eyes. "Honest? 'Cause I want to go back to Meria and meet up with the guys, and stuff."  
  
"Hai.. go," He mumbled, his attention lost in the contents of the folder.  
  
Lilka stared at Ashley for the longest, as the others began leaving the briefing room, trying to figure something out. Ashley never liked reading the mission reports--he always wanted to stay in Meria, to sleep, and to see Marina.  
  
"Ashley--"  
  
"Lilka,don't worry about it." Ashley raised his head to smile briefly at her. That was, one of the things she liked about Ashley--his smiles. They were soft, and always genuine. "I'll be okay. When I finish reading this, I'll be in Meria with you guys, okay? Go and have some Jelly donuts and tell Marina I'll be there later, for me?"  
  
Lilka nodded her head softly, confusion still written on her face. On the bright side, he had mentioned Jelly donuts, and it seemed to lighten her mood. She stood up and left the briefing room, closing the door soundly behind her.  
  
Ashley sighed, and turned his attention back to the folder, his eyes going a bit cloudy as he stared at the pages blankly.  
  
*Marina, I...miss you...* 


	2. Chapter 1 - Midnight Snacks

  
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**Disclaimer**: Wild Arms 2 doesn't belong to me. Wah.  
**Pairings**: Ashley+Marina, AshleyxLilka, Brad+Tim ... Blah.  
**Rating**: R *SNORT AT FFNET*  
**Warnings**: What...? Well, language, really. And maybe naughty stuff (or mentionings therein)  
  
--  
  
**Notes**: YARGH. STILL, THE REVISION! *piku* Actually, it's not so bad. After revising these first few chapters, I'll get to work on fixing Be My Canary and put up my new chapter for it. Yay.  
  
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*...* Denotes a thought.  
**...** Denotes the demon(Blaze) within Ashley.  
  
--  
  
**Take My Hand **: **Midnight Snacks**  
  
  
  
  
  
"I-I don't know. This, seems wrong..."  
  
**"How hard can it be, eh?"**  
  
"I...I don't know. I..don't trust myself."  
  
**"If you need me... you know how to reach for it. Don't be afraid to try..."**  
  
"I, I...j-just stop. I don't ...--I want Marina. I just want to be back at home in Meria with Marina."  
  
**"You...will know that you will need me soon. Do not waste an opportunity to help those you love."**  
  
"S-stop it... please."  
  
**"Don't lie to yourself Ashley..."**  
  
*"Ashley...Blaze..."*  
  
---  
  
"Aww... C'mon, Brad! It's boring back there!" The soft alto of Tim's voice raised an octave or two as he began tugging lightly on the muscled arms of Brad. His elder, face wearing a frown as any other time, gave the boy a gentle push.  
  
"No, Tim. We have to head back to the Chateau. We have a mission for tomorrow--we need to check up on our objective with Ashley." Brad spoke, lowering his gaze to the smaller and more fragile boy. Tim pouted up at him still, his eyes filled with a bit of a listless look.  
  
All the time, Brad was...nice, to him. For one reason or another, Brad was there to tell Tim the little things--assure him of the little things--from time to time. A soft breath of air passed through the young mans lips, his shoulders hanging with his head.  
  
As Tim considered about it, following what he was saying, wasn't _so_ bad.. was it? Following orders? Brad and Lilka seemed so protective of him, it wasn't much of a surprise when he heard Brad's words. *Work over pleasure, as Brad always says,* he thought. "Fine, let's go back."  
  
Brad stared down at the young man before him in surprise. *Tim? Willing to cooperate? I'll make it up to him later," Brad thought, discreetly eyeing the boy with hooded eyes. If it were possible to Tim, he would've thought Brad was acting odd at his current change of heart.   
  
"Just get whatever weapons you need from the shop. We're going back right away."  
  
"Yes'sir!" Tim mock-saluted the long-haired man. Going onto his way into the personal-skill and item shop, a small bundle of purple fur--known as Tim's guardian, Pooka--had appeared from the folds of Tims poncho, and flied about him with a bit of eagerness.  
  
"That kid...hn." Brad shrugged his shoulders, and leant against a nearby vertical pillar.   
  
Brad as he knew, was known for many things. But one of those things were never compassion--Prisoner 666 was never known for compassion. Even during the times of the Slayheim Liberation, he was known for leadership and guerilla tactics.  
  
The thickening lines on the mans face softened into wrinkles as he relaxed. Brad hated to dwell on the past. Fortunately, his attention was brought back by a brunette that had just slammed the door of the Meria Bakery, hands full with bags--Lilka.   
  
The Crest Sorceress smiled brightly as she held onto the bags tightly; and then cringed as she heard the Bakery door slam behind her. Lilka heard Marina's bright voice--yelling of course--from within the closed entry-way.  
  
"Tell Ashley I'll see him in a few!" came the soft feminine voice.   
  
"Sure!" Lilka nodded her head, her cape bouncing gently behind her. She began juggling the bags carefully within her embrace, digging briefly within her pocket for an item. Reaching, an emerald sphere slid into her grasp and shone briefly in the light. In all, Lilka had the worst experience with teleport orbs; they always sent her to the wrong places. And if they did work, she was sent into the incorrect area of her destination.  
  
With a heavy sigh, she closed her eyes. The small green orb began to illuminate and envelope the sorceress in a soft light.  
  
To those who had briefly watched, Lilka Eleniak--sister of the illustrious Eleniak witch-girl--had dissapeared within the now flickering trail of green light.  
  
And yet, still watching even as she was gone, Brad chuckled softly, despite himself. "..She must be pretty hungry."  
  
--------------  
  
**Why do fools choose not to listen?**  
  
"Harder. Concentrate." A Bayonette was spun through a young mans hands, stopping abruptly as he took a fighting stance.  
  
**Try all you want. It will not help.**  
  
"I DON'T NEED YOU!" The sharpened weapon thrusted out, nearly slashing an expanse of bookcasing.  
  
**Remember, the key is Access[1]...**  
  
Ashley Winchester sighed, closing his eyes as he began breathing deeply. Totally rigid in stance; muscles aching as he glared briefly into the air.   
  
"Leave me alone..."  
  
-------------  
  
The soft glow of green light began as a small dot across the expanse of a lush, ruby carpet. Slowly growing vertically, the light revealed the form of a young, fourteen-year old female, hands full of paper-brown packages. Blinking, the girl let out a soft gasp--dropping her paper packages onto the floor with a light 'plop' sound following. She stared at what was before her, mouth ajar; totally frozen.  
  
The Bayonette-toting, Gun Warrior blinked his eyes as he stared as the female before him. The sharpened weapon was held, a definite point, held but a feathers breath away from the identified sorceress' thin-shaped eyebrows. There was a true need to panic, but Ashley held his weapon down slowly, not wanting to place injury on the young woman.   
  
As he had begun to notice the time of day, and his current state of dress--consisting of just the casual blue jeans--he swallowed hard, staring at the younger girl with a bit of shock. "Lilka?"  
  
"...A-Ashley?" The voice squawked, still shooken by her near-death. The sorceress blinked, as she realized she had held her breath; letting out a long-dued sigh, as a hand went to her chest, hovering above the heart. "..I-I was a little worried, there..." she stated, voice nearly back to normal.  
  
"Ara, Sorry. I was traini--how'd you get in here, anyway?" Ashley began putting his bayonette up, snatching up a towel and hanging it across his shoulder.  
  
"I-I..used a teleport...orb..." Lilka inhaled again, this time falling onto her knees. Eyes just hooded briefly by her hair. As per go any other time, Lilka was purely spooked after using said teleport gems. Her stomach churned gently as she began falling towards the ground. "Ooh..."  
  
Turning as he heard the gentle thud of something across the carpeted floor of the make-shift bedroom, "Huh? What--Lilka!" Ashley dropped his towel, making a short dash over to the young woman and catching her securely in his arms. He knelt before her, waving a hand shortly before her eyes. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry, I was just caught up in training and--"  
  
"Ooh.." And he stopped short, feeling the head of his fellow teammate fall against his chest. Ashley, in all his worry, yet realizing his own role, held onto the girls body, cradling her against his slightly damp chest, and began to pet her hair.  
  
"Lilka? ...C'mon, talk to me. What happened?" Ashley spoke softly, rubbing in circles on the girls back. "Lilka..?"  
  
"Mm... tel...port..gem... feel..ic," she spoke, aganst his chest.  
  
Ashley pulled her back to stare at her face. It was odd to him, her face was a soft rosy hue. Her pupils were also dilated. His hand brushed the hair from her forehead, and he let it rest across her head. *..She's burning up..*  
  
**Oh, Aaa-shleeeeee-y...**  
  
"Nn.. aid, over..."  
  
"Ah..Lilka..?--A-Altaecia!!" Ashley now felt the need to panic, as he swept the light-weight woman into his arms, cradling her softly to his chest. Worried or not, there was SOMETHING wrong with the girl in his arms, which brought on the immeadiate cause for worry. What still surprised him the most, was how she ended up in his own quaters.  
  
"Altaecia! Help!"  
  
----------  
  
Within a few moments as Ashley had gotten the door opened, and voiced himself louder, did the blonde-haired woman show up. Panting, she stared at the bundle in his arms and gasped softly. "A-Ashley...? What happened?" It took the young man a moment to actually recognize her.  
  
The usually, tidy blonde hair, was now disheveled. Untucked locks of gold hair strayed from behind her ears. Her dress--the top in the least--was half buttoned up. And even the wild, wide-eyed look from the woman was in the least bit alarming.  
  
"Ah, she... teleported into my room.. I-I don't know. She just fell down..." And decidedly did her brother show up, Irving Vold Valeria -- just as disheveled as his sister. Silver hair amok across his countennance, he stared at who Ashley held; his face showing more concern than the other two.  
  
"Hurry--take her to the infirmary. Ashley, tell me what happened," Irving began, bracing himself sturdilly on his crutch.  
  
Ashley was a bit worried even as he looked at Irvings state. The man was in worse shape than his sister. "...What happened to you two?"  
  
Altaecia let a small noise escape her throat as she heard Ashley, her face lighting up in a soft rose color. She began pulling at Lilka from Ashleys arms, eliciting a gentle moan from the young woman as she was exchanged from the two. Lilka clutched lightly to Altaecia's dress, gasping softer now as she was aided into the infirmary down the hall. "C-C'mon Lilka... We need to see what's wrong with you."  
  
"Agh.. na comi..." Lilka moaned softly, into the older womans ear. She hugged Lilka close, as she hurridly disappeared behind the bend of the corner, now out of both of the males sight.  
  
Irving frowned at Ashley, a bit unnerved at his blunt question. There was nothing wrong with the man, but, to play dumb and beat around the bush... "What are you talking about, Winchester?"  
  
"Irving... You and Altaecia ... you look like you've been in a fight or worse," Ashley began, standing up straight, despite his lack of dress. "Are you two okay?"  
  
Irving's brow twitched as he stared at the gun-warrior in anger. *Nosy boy.*  
  
"Now what happened to the Sorceress?"Irving stated flatly, as he braced himself more against his crutch.   
  
Ashley paid no mind to Irvings attitude. *If he doesn't feel like telling me,* he thought, realizing his avoidance at his question, *Then i'll have to find out on my own.*  
  
"She teleported into my room suddenly.. I have no idea how. I was training, then the next second I'm holding my bayonette to her head." The Gun Warriors shoulders slumped. He was a little upset--what happened to Lilka anyway? *I know she's stronger than that...*  
  
"...No matter. Contact the others and tell them it's time to get back. You need all the rest you can, for the mission, tomorrow." Irving began, and turned, returning to his room the floor above.  
  
*...Another thing. How did he get here so fast.. his room is upstairs, while ours is down here...* With a shrug, Ashley dug briefly in his pocket, fishing out the small PHS device. Punching a few numbers into the unit, he held it up lightly against his ear, listening to the steady ringing as it attempted to connect to another source.  
  
"Moshishi!" Came a high-pitched, un-human like voice through the reciever. Followed by a few lower voices, did the speaker repeat, in clarity. "Moshi moshi?"  
  
"Moshi'. Tim?" Ashley winced initially. The first voice was brutally high for his eardrums.  
  
"Yes. Before, It was Pooka. What's wrong, Ashley?" There was a brief noise of static.  
  
"Come back to the Chateau. And bring Brad. We need to rest, and Lilka's had a little...accident." Ashley cleared his throat over the reciever.  
  
"Is Lilkasan okay?" The voice sounded worried, but from the lack of holding his PHS device closer to his face, the small Guardian had repeated Tim's question, voice high with unbridled jubilance. "Lilkasan, okay!"  
  
"Pooka! Stop!"  
  
"Uhh, Tim. Just get back. Now." And on that note, Ashley hung up his end of the PHS.  
  
*Gotta see how Lilka is doing...* And Ashley went back into his room, closing the door behind himself. "First a quick shower, and then I'll go see her."  
  
**I wonder what she was carrying...**  
  
*Shut up, Demon.*  
  
**...Ashley, that's not really nice, is it?**  
  
"I wonder what Lilka brought anyway," Ashley muttered beneath his breath, as he eyed the brown bags on the carpeted floor. Peering inside a bag, he produced a low noise, as if sickened, almost.  
  
  
*..Marina! I forgot!*  
  
[------]  
[1] Yeah... he gets to become Blaze by using Access. Another time was when he saved Marina *yech* 


	3. Chapter 2 - Memories of Love

Warnings: This part.. uhh ... @_@;; AshleyxMarina[very vague] ... I'm trying. ^_^;;  
  
Sorry for the late postings .. i've been a little busy; never got to finish this, or my other short fic. *cough* I've noticed alot of typos or mistakes i made x.x; Anyone wanna be my official proofreader? Comment and say so!  
  
I've also caught back on track with my status in the game. So far, by the way this fic is going, it's not all too far off track. ^_^;  
  
*...* Denotes thoughts.  
**...** Demon/KnightBlaze in Ashley [The usual]  
/.../ Denotes emphasis [FFnet removes all my formatting ;_;]  
=== Denotes a flashback.  
  
  
Take My Hand -- Chapter 2  
  
  
**Told you, silly boy...**  
  
"...." The heavy spray of heated water fell across Ashley's face and chest. Even after what he had experienced .. his mind, was still baffled.  
  
**Ashley..? I-I.. hurry and go see /her/.**   
  
Ashley snorted softly as he braced himself upon the tiled-walls of the personal shower. "All this time, huh. I'm beginning to wonder if you two work together when I /need/ to battle," he spoke aloud, even then thinking *..I sould like an idiot...*  
  
**But, you're not. You're there for everyone. Don't let this time be an exception!**  
  
"...Right." And his hand went to turn the large silver knobs within the shower, shutting off all the water that had poured on him. Opening the glass shower doors, he snatched a towel briefly from the counter to wrap about his waist.   
  
**Don't tell me you don't remember /this/!** the demon cried within his head, voice trembling with brief jolts of laughter. The softer presence within him -- Argetlahm, or even Anastasia -- seemed to vanish within his mind at every cackle of the Demon inside. And then, Ashley sighed; it wouldn't go away unless he /tried/. And the re-occurance wasn't in his favor.  
  
  
====  
"I need to hurry up before Marina gets here..."  
  
And Ashley stepped out of the shower, shivering with the soft gust of cold wind. Frowning, he eyed the counter. "I really should bring towels... I'm /freezing/!"  
  
Stepping out of the bathroom, he looked briefly into his closet -- snatching out a towel to wrap about his waist. He blinked, hearing the soft exclaimation of air behind him. Blinking, he turned around, his face turning red as..  
  
***  
  
Marina Irington had just stepped off the elevator of the Valeria Chateau to the second floor, being escorted by one of the assistants. Her heart was literally in her throat as she clutched a small paper bag with the words 'Meria Bakery' written in calligraphy to her chest. Her eyes widened to larger saucers as she saw the expanse of hallway. Since she entered the lush mansion -- or did she just think higher of it -- *Sir Valeria must be a millionaire!*  
  
"Miss Irington? Mister Winchester's room is the second to your left," said the as waving his hand in the said direction.  
  
Blinking out of her thoughts, she nodded, brown hair bouncing softly as she had kept it unbound for the evening. The assistant having gone back into the elevator, Marina only sighed and held onto the bag a little tighter. "Now uhh .. second to the left.."  
  
As she reached the door, her hand hovered breifly over the door, and slowly descended to the doorknob, finding it unlocked. Softly chewing on her lower lip, she pushed the door open slowly, keeping as quiet as she could. *Hope he doesn't mind a surprise..*  
  
Slipping inside, she closed the door softly behind her, and locked it, giving a small click.  
  
*Now where would he be,* she thought, stepping into the bedroom of the Gun Warrior, and placing the paper bad onto his dresser. She began to assess her hair, twirling fingers through it softly, or just adjusting the small clips she had set inside it. *Tonight...I'm hoping this will be special for both me and Ashley..*  
  
Hearing the low creaking of the floor and the opening of a door, Marina briefly smiled brightly, before seating herself at the side of Ashley's bed, dusting off her clothing. As he entered, she put on her broadest smile, awaiting for the boy to see his childhood love   
  
But the sight before her caused eyes to widen, mouth opening in a soft gasp. "...!"  
  
"M-Marina?!"  
  
===  
  
Ashley winced -- that memory was /embarassing/! *Damn Demon,* he thought, drying the navy locks of his hair out with the towel. "I've got to see how Lilka is doing..hope she's okay," Ashleys eyes wandered to the bag of Jelly rolls which lay atop his dresser.  
  
"Hope she's still hungry..."  
  
TBC  
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How was that? @_@; A little time off to Ashley before he visits Lilka. Sorry for posting so late ... been really busy x_x; Anyway, I'm trying to finish Be My Canary, which is also posted on ffnet. ;_; Comments, please! 


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